# Oona Laurence
**Oona Laurence** is an American theater and film actress based in New York City, best known as one of the four young actresses who originated the title role of *Matilda the Musical* on Broadway and for her screen roles as Leila Hope in *Southpaw* (2015), Natalie in *Pete's Dragon* (2016), and Amy in [Sofia Coppola](https://www.edgepedia.org/sofia-coppola)'s *The Beguiled* (2017).[1](https://www.timminchin.com/matilda/) • [2](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Oona-Laurence/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Broadway debut | Matilda (original cast, alternating) in *Matilda the Musical*, Shubert Theatre, opened April 11, 2013; the production ran through January 1, 2017[1](https://www.timminchin.com/matilda/) • [3](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/oona-laurence-493783) |
| Theater honor | 2013 Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre, shared with the other three original Matildas, Sophia Gennusa, Bailey Ryon, and Milly Shapiro[1](https://www.timminchin.com/matilda/) • [3](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/oona-laurence-493783) |
| Recording recognition | Grammy Award nominee for *Matilda the Musical*[4](https://www.purchase.edu/live/profiles/7916-oona-laurence) |
| Film honors | 38th Young Artist Award for Best Performance in a Feature Film, for *Pete's Dragon*[4](https://www.purchase.edu/live/profiles/7916-oona-laurence) • [5](https://www.purchase.edu/live/files/5427-oona-laurence-resumeheadshotpdf) |
| Signature film roles | Leila Hope in *Southpaw* (2015), Jane in *Bad Moms* (2016) and *A Bad Moms Christmas* (2017), Amy in *The Beguiled* (2017), Sophie in *Big Time Adolescence* (2019)[2](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Oona-Laurence/) |
| Television | Guest-star roles on *Law & Order: Special Victims Unit*, *Blindspot*, and *Orange Is the New Black*; voice work on Cartoon Network's *Summer Camp Island*[5](https://www.purchase.edu/live/files/5427-oona-laurence-resumeheadshotpdf) • [4](https://www.purchase.edu/live/profiles/7916-oona-laurence) |
| Education | BFA in Acting, Conservatory of Theater Arts at Purchase College (SUNY Purchase), graduating class of 2025[5](https://www.purchase.edu/live/files/5427-oona-laurence-resumeheadshotpdf) |
## Matilda on Broadway
Laurence was one of four young actresses the producers announced in November 2012 to alternate in the title role of *Matilda the Musical* on Broadway, all of them making their Broadway debuts; the others were Milly Shapiro, Bailey Ryon, and Sophia Gennusa.[1](https://www.timminchin.com/matilda/) The Royal Shakespeare Company production opened at Broadway's Shubert Theatre on April 11, 2013, based on [Roald Dahl](https://www.edgepedia.org/roald-dahl)'s 1988 novel about a girl who unloosed her magical powers on nasty parents and an evil headmistress.[1](https://www.timminchin.com/matilda/) • [6](https://childrensactingacademy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Oona-Laurence-Ethan-Khudisman-Elle-Winter-and-Other-Childrens-Acting-Academy-Alumni-Find-Success-in-Show-Business.pdf) Laurence was introduced to the casting world through the Children's Acting Academy's annual Agent/Manager Showcase, where a manager discovered her and introduced her to an agent; she then auditioned and was cast in the title role.[6](https://childrensactingacademy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Oona-Laurence-Ethan-Khudisman-Elle-Winter-and-Other-Childrens-Acting-Academy-Alumni-Find-Success-in-Show-Business.pdf)
The four original Matildas shared the 2013 Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre, a special Tony honor given rather than a competitive Tony Award.[1](https://www.timminchin.com/matilda/) • [3](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/oona-laurence-493783) Laurence is also a Grammy Award nominee for *Matilda the Musical*.[4](https://www.purchase.edu/live/profiles/7916-oona-laurence)
## Child and teenage screen career
After completing her run in *Matilda*, Laurence took guest roles on network television, including *Law & Order: Special Victims Unit* and *Blindspot*, and a guest spot on Netflix's *Orange Is the New Black*, before beginning her film career.[6](https://childrensactingacademy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Oona-Laurence-Ethan-Khudisman-Elle-Winter-and-Other-Childrens-Acting-Academy-Alumni-Find-Success-in-Show-Business.pdf) • [5](https://www.purchase.edu/live/files/5427-oona-laurence-resumeheadshotpdf) Her film debut came in the family film *A Little Game* (2014), in which she played Becky Langer.[2](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Oona-Laurence/)
The year 2015 was her first heavy film year. She played Leila Hope, the daughter of [Jake Gyllenhaal](https://www.edgepedia.org/jake-gyllenhaal)'s boxer Billy Hope, in [Antoine Fuqua](https://www.edgepedia.org/antoine-fuqua)'s *Southpaw*; TIME's review called her "the fiercely good Oona Laurence" in the role of the Hopes' cherished child.[7](https://time.com/3969267/southpaws-terrific-punch/) In the same year she appeared in *I Smile Back* opposite [Sarah Silverman](https://www.edgepedia.org/sarah-silverman), and played Tommie, an abandoned young girl, in Ross Partridge's *Lamb*, her first starring film position.[8](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/oona_laurence) • [5](https://www.purchase.edu/live/files/5427-oona-laurence-resumeheadshotpdf) Discussing *Southpaw* with the National Board of Review, Laurence said Gyllenhaal let the young cast shape their scenes together and that the two improvised when she first came in to read.[9](https://nationalboardofreview.org/2015/07/qa-with-oona-laurence-and-jake-gyllenhaal/)
In 2016 she played Natalie in Disney's *[Pete's Dragon](https://www.edgepedia.org/petes-dragon-2016-film)*, directed by David Lowery, sharing the screen with [Robert Redford](https://www.edgepedia.org/robert-redford), Bryce Dallas Howard, and Oakes Fegley, and played Jane, Mila Kunis's daughter, in both *Bad Moms* and its 2017 sequel *[A Bad Moms Christmas](https://www.edgepedia.org/a-bad-moms-christmas)*.[8](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/oona_laurence) For *Pete's Dragon* she received the 38th Young Artist Award for Best Performance in a Feature Film.[5](https://www.purchase.edu/live/files/5427-oona-laurence-resumeheadshotpdf)
**A shift to darker material.** In Sofia Coppola's *The Beguiled* (2017), Laurence played Amy, a student at an isolated Southern girls' boarding school during the Civil War, working opposite [Nicole Kidman](https://www.edgepedia.org/nicole-kidman), Elle Fanning, Kirsten Dunst, and [Colin Farrell](https://www.edgepedia.org/colin-farrell).[10](https://hellogiggles.com/the-beguiled-oona-laurence/) • [8](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/oona_laurence) As a child actor she worked with acting veterans including Kidman, Farrell, and Gyllenhaal, and with directors including Coppola, Fuqua, and Lowery.[4](https://www.purchase.edu/live/profiles/7916-oona-laurence)
In Jason Orley's *[Big Time Adolescence](https://www.edgepedia.org/big-time-adolescence)* (2019), a comedy starring [Pete Davidson](https://www.edgepedia.org/pete-davidson), Laurence played Sophie, the former friend of teenage protagonist Mo, whose scenes serve as a moral reference point for the film's view of the older character Zeke.[11](https://behindthelensonline.net/site/interviews/interview-exclusives/oona-laurence-goes-from-petes-dragon-to-pete-davidson-with-big-time-adolescence-exclusive-interview/) In 2020 she appeared in three releases: *Big Time Adolescence* wide release, *[Lost Girls](https://www.edgepedia.org/lost-girls-film)* on Netflix as Sarra Gilbert, and Netflix's *A Babysitter's Guide to Monster Hunting* as Liz LeRue, a lead role directed by Rachel Talalay.[2](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Oona-Laurence/) • [5](https://www.purchase.edu/live/files/5427-oona-laurence-resumeheadshotpdf)
## Recent work and training
Laurence is a theater as well as a film actress, and her conservatory credits at SUNY Purchase include Karlie/Lourdes in *Luna Gale*, Moritz Stiefel in *Spring Awakening*, and Miranda in *The Tempest*, along with Touchstone in *As You Like It* in a Royal Academy of Dramatic Art short course.[4](https://www.purchase.edu/live/profiles/7916-oona-laurence) She is completing a BFA in Acting at Purchase College's Conservatory of Theater Arts, in the graduating class of 2025.[5](https://www.purchase.edu/live/files/5427-oona-laurence-resumeheadshotpdf)
In 2026 she was announced as part of the ensemble cast of *Red Ink*, a newsroom thriller from Incline Studios set in post-World War Two New York, unfolding in real time over a single morning in November 1949 inside the headquarters of the fictional Verity Press, using uninterrupted one-shot takes. The film had wrapped production in [Syracuse, New York](https://www.edgepedia.org/syracuse-new-york), and was in post-production with no release date announced.[12](https://www.purchase.edu/live/news/9243-oona-laurence-25-to-appear-in-newsroom-thriller) • [13](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4802218/news/)
## References
1. [Tim Minchin, The Matilda the Musical Story, Chapter Three: New York, Broadway](https://www.timminchin.com/matilda/)
2. [Oona Laurence, BroadwayWorld actor page](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Oona-Laurence/)
3. [Oona Laurence, IBDB (Internet Broadway Database)](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/oona-laurence-493783)
4. [Oona Laurence, Acting profile, Purchase College, SUNY](https://www.purchase.edu/live/profiles/7916-oona-laurence)
5. [Oona Laurence resume and headshot, Purchase College](https://www.purchase.edu/live/files/5427-oona-laurence-resumeheadshotpdf)
6. [Children's Acting Academy students: Oona Laurence and other alumni](https://childrensactingacademy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Oona-Laurence-Ethan-Khudisman-Elle-Winter-and-Other-Childrens-Acting-Academy-Alumni-Find-Success-in-Show-Business.pdf)
7. [Mary Pols, Review: Southpaw's Terrific Punch, TIME, July 23, 2015](https://time.com/3969267/southpaws-terrific-punch/)
8. [Oona Laurence, Rotten Tomatoes filmography](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/oona_laurence)
9. [Southpaw, Q&A with Oona Laurence and Jake Gyllenhaal, National Board of Review, July 24, 2015](https://nationalboardofreview.org/2015/07/qa-with-oona-laurence-and-jake-gyllenhaal/)
10. [Oona Laurence goes behind The Beguiled, HelloGiggles, July 3, 2017](https://hellogiggles.com/the-beguiled-oona-laurence/)
11. [Oona Laurence goes from Pete's Dragon to Pete Davidson with Big Time Adolescence, Behind the Lens Online interview](https://behindthelensonline.net/site/interviews/interview-exclusives/oona-laurence-goes-from-petes-dragon-to-pete-davidson-with-big-time-adolescence-exclusive-interview/)
12. [Oona Laurence '25 to Appear in Newsroom Thriller Red Ink, Purchase College news, March 25, 2026](https://www.purchase.edu/live/news/9243-oona-laurence-25-to-appear-in-newsroom-thriller)
13. [Newsroom Thriller Red Ink Unveils Ensemble Cast, IMDb news](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4802218/news/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Child and youth screen performers › Child performers born 2001 to 2010 › Performers born 2001 to 2005*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 20, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 20, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license